A Time to Die - Smith Wilbur (книги серии онлайн .TXT) 📗

"You bastard!" she screamed at him. "You're as bad as any Renarno thug, as bad as China himself!"

"It's our lives, don't you understand? It's survival."

"I can't believe what I'm hearing!"

"This is a hard, cruel land. If we are to survive, we have to live by those standards. We can't afford the folly of compassion."

She wanted to attack him physically; she balled her fists in the effort of self-control, but her voice was still shrill. "Compassion and conscience are all that separate us from the animals." She drew a deep breath. "If you value what there is between us, you won't say anything more, you won't try to rationalize what you almost did to this child."

"You prefer to be captured by General China?" he demanded.

"Ms child, as you call her, won't hesitate to give them our exact whereabouts."

"Don't, Sean! I'm warning you, everything you say is causing damage to our relationship that can never be repaired."

"All right, then." Sean reached out to take her hands and draw her to him. "What do you want us to do with her? I'll do whatever you say. You want us to turn her loose to report to the first Renamo patrol that comes along, I'll do it."

Claudia was standing rigid in the circle of his arms, and though the strident edge was gone from her voice, it was cold and determined. "We'll take her with us."

Sean dropped his arms. "With us?"

"That's what I said. If we can't leave her, then that's the only solution."

Sean stared at her and she went on firmly, "You said you'd do whatever I say. You made me a promise."

He opened his mouth, then closed it and looked at the black girl.

She had understood some of the argument, enough to know that her LIFE was at stake and that Claudia was her champion, her savior. When Sean saw the expression on the child's face, suddenly he was filled with shame and self-disgust. It was an alien sensation.

During the bush war the Scouts had left no witnesses. This woman of his was turning him soft, he thought, then smiled and shook his head-or perhaps she was simply humanizing him.

"All right." He was still smiling. "The girl comes with us on condition that you forgive me."

Their kiss was bx*el, cool. Claudia's lips were tightly closed.

Sean understood it would take time for her to recover from her outrage.

She turned from Sean and lifted the black girl to her feet.

Miriam clung to her thankfully.

"Fetch her loincloth," Sean ordered Matatu. "And put your knife away. The girl is coming with us." Matatu rolled his eyes in disapproval. But he went to find the girl's single item of clothing.

While Miriam rewound the scrap of rag around her waist, Sergeant Alphonso leaned on his rifle and watched her with interest.

It was obvious that he was not unhappy with the decision to spare the girl. Claudia did not approve of his appraisal of her protegee, and she opened her small personal pack and dug out her one spare shirt, a camouflage Renamo sweatshirt from General China's stores.

The shirt hung half down MtriajVs thighs and satisfied Claudia's sense of decorum. The black girl was delighted, her terror of a few minutes before forgotten as she Preened in her new finery.

"Thank you, Donna, think you very much. You good lady."

"All right," Sean intervened. "The fashion show is over. Let's move out." And Alphonso took Miriam's arm.

only then did the girl realize she was being abducted, and she pulled away and broke into a passionate protest.

"Damn it!" Sean exploded. "Now we are really in trouble! "what is it?" Claudia demanded.

"She isn't alone. She's got others with her."

"I thought she had lost her parents!"

"That's right, but she's got a brother and sister hidden in the selves. Damn swamps. Two kids so young they can't fend for them it! Damn it!"

Sean repeated bitterly. "Now what the hell do we do?"

with us also," Claudia "We fetch the children and take them stated simply.

"Two brats! Are you crazy? We aren,t running an orphanage."

"Do we have to go over this one more time?" Claudia turned her back on him in exasperation and took Miriam's hand. "It's all right. You can trust me. We'll look after all of YOU."

The black girl quieted and stared at Claudia with a puppy's trust and adoration.

"I'ere are the children? We'll fetch them." hand into

"Come, Donna. I show you." Miriam led her by the the swamp.

It was almost dark when they reached the tiny island where Miriam had hidden the children in a clump of papyrus. When she parted the thick green stems, two pairs of huge dark eyes stared out at them like owlets from the nest.

"A boy." Claudia lifted him out. He was five or six years of age skinny and shivering with fright. "And a girl." She was younger: not more than four, and Claudia exclaimed as she touched her.